A well-functioning and resilient financial system needs a good mix of institutions that collectively meet the financial intermediation needs of the country, be it individuals, households, businesses, sectors and local governments, while simultaneously enhancing the stability of the system as a whole.
Head - Financial Systems Design
Research Associate
Research Associate
On 10 April 2026, the Reserve Bank of India released the “Draft – Reserve Bank of India (Non-Banking Financial Companies – Registration, Exemptions and Framework for Scale Based Regulation) Second Amendment Directions, 2026”. The Draft Amendments provide a new methodology to classify Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) in the Upper Layer of the scale-based regulatory framework, […]
In this response, we present our comments to the Draft Amendment Directions for ‘Advertising, Marketing and Sales of Financial Products and Services by Regulated Entities’ issued by the Reserve Bank of India on February 11, 2026.
In this blog post, we analyse the changes in the direction and weigh them through the lens of customer protection and long-term sustainability. We also offer suggestions on streamlining the KYC updation (re-KYC) exercise without adding to systemic risks.
On 13 December 2024, the Ministry of Finance, Government of India (MoF) released the draft Banning of Unregulated Lending Activities (BULA) Act. This aligns with recommendations made in the Report of the Working Group on Digital Lending.
This study sought to understand the impact of the new regulations on the microfinance sector through the lens of different categories of stakeholders – customers, leadership at microfinance institutions (MFIs) and intermediating staff.
Debt distress among microfinance borrowers is on the rise, sufficiently so that it may be characterised as a crisis for the sector. This is driven by factors across the supply- and demand-sides, as well as factors inherent in the nature of the credit cycle, where periodic booms and busts have been present throughout history. To address this, we propose two sets of recommendations for the regulator: a set of recommendations that can be initiated in the short-term and another set that can be initiated over the medium-term.
The Government of India called for pre-budget consultations in early January 2025. Dvara Research was one of the invitees, and we are once again grateful to policy makers for reposing trust in our work. In the past as well, Dvara Research has been a partner and advisor of choice for key policy-making bodies in the country.
The new proposals can significantly increase the number of RIAs by relaxing the requirement of having a Master's degree and prior work experience and by lowering net-worth requirements.
Consumer protection in financial services is a core component of Dvara Research’s mission, activities and its advocacy agenda. In this regard, I had the opportunity to participate at Consumers International’s Global Congress 2023, in Nairobi, Kenya, in December 2023.
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Insurance Products) Regulations, 2023, hereafter "Draft Regulations", was released by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) in December 2023.
In all our research efforts, we strive to maintain an independent voice that speaks for the low-income household and household enterprises. Our ability to perform this function is significantly enhanced by our commitment to disseminate as a pure public good, all the intellectual capital that we create.
